Oscillatory dump



May 22, 1923. 456,388

D. F. LEPLEY OSCILLATORY DUMP Filed July 14 1920 4 Sheets-$heet 1 O vwewtoz,

q/vbtwoo I I v 1 I I 3g :7 I t -May 22-, 1923. 1,456,388

D. F. LEPLEY' OS C I LLATORY DUMP Filed Jilly 14 1920 4 Sheets-$heet 5 May 22, 1923.

D. F, LE PLEY OSGILLATORY DUMP Filed July 14 1920 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented May 22, 1923.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

OSCILLATOR/Y DUMP.

Application filed July 14, 1920. Serial No. 396,074.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DANIEL F. LEPLEY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Connellsville, in the county of Fayette and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Oscillatory Dump, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an oscillatory dump for use in unloading mine cars.

The expense of installing an oscillatory mine car dump, with all of its necessary auxiliaries, is justified only in connection with large mines which contemplate a large ultimate tonnage and is profitable only when it possesses characteristics of speed, safety, con stant control, positive positioning of the working parts, uninterrupted operation, simplicity of structure, and simplicity of operation so that the structure can be operated properly by an inexperienced person. Furthermore it has been found in practice that in addition to speed of operation, an oscillatory dump must possess such features as will make it perfectly safe and insure never failing and positive registry of the track rails on the dump with the rails on the stationary sections of track under all the varying m0- mentum conditions, due to irregularly loaded cars. Another feature that must be present in an efiicient structure of this character is absence of all undue shocks at various stages of the operation of the parts, it being necessary to have the dump actuated by power and to keep it under perfect automatic control during the brief intervals following the rocking of the dump.

It is an object of the present invention to meet all of the requirements above enumerated and to provide a simple, durable andefficient dump which insures positive registering of the movable and stationary rails while a car is in transit, it being impossible to shift the dump until a car is located entirely on the rails of the dump whereupon the car operates means which will automatically release the dump and allow it to be shifted to discharge the contents of the car.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that, within the scope of what is claimed,

Figure 2 is a side elevation partly in section, the dump being shown unlocked and ready to be tilted. Figure 3 is an end elevation of the dump and showing the mechanism provided for 5 V rotating it.

Figure a is a transverse section through a portion of the dump and showing the car operated means for controlling the valve, said valve and its connections being indicated in diagram. v

Figure 5 is an enlarged detail view of one of the chocks or horns used for holding a car on the dump.

Figure 6 is a plan view of a portion of the fixed track and the controlling devices adjacent thereto.

Figure 7 is a detail view of the arcuate shield.

Referring to the figures by characters of reference 1 designates bearings mounted on suitable supports and in which is mounted a shaft 2. This shaft supports a tiltable frame 3 on which is mounted a track section 4 consisting of rails which are parallel with the longitudinal axis of the shaft 2. Pivotally mounted at the sides of these rails are curved chocks or horns 5 each of which is preferably provided with a recess 6 containing inner and outer cushioning springs 7 supporting a cushioning block 8 slidable in the recess and projecting normally therebeyond.

Mounted in hangers 9 extending from the bottom of the frame 2 is a shaft 10 having upwardly extending arms 11 connected to links 12 which, in turn, are pivoted to the respective horns 5. Rods 13 are mounted on the arms 11 at their points of connection with the links 12 and slide within guide hangers 14. Springs 15 are mounted on these rods and serve to hold the parts .11 and 12 normally positioned against a stop 15' as shown in Figure 2 with the horns 5 elevated to holding position and with the point of connection between the parts 11 and whilethe-pipe 46 opens into the other end.

12 shifted past the dead center. An arm 16 extends from the shaft 10 and has a rod 17 pivotally connected to it and slidable within a supporting sleeve 18. This sleeve is connected to the frame 3 by any suitable means and has combined with it an arcuate shield 19 arranged in a plane perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the shaft 2 and having a central opening 19.

Secured to one end of the shaft 2 is a gear 20 and this gear constantly meshes with a rack 21 supported by rollers 22. These rollers are mounted on bearings 23 carried by a supporting structure 24. A piston rod 25 extends from one end of the rack and into a cylinder 26, there being'a piston 27 mounted for reciprocation in the cylinder and connected to the rod 25. Pipes open into the end portions of the cylinderfor conducting air under pressure .toand from the cylinder. Another rod 29 is extended from the other end of the rack 21 and has a piston 30 mounted for reciprocation within a cylinder 31. A by-pass 32 extends from one end to the other of this cylinder and oil or other cushioning fluid is contained within the cylinder and is adapted to be displaced from one end to the other of the cylinder when the piston moves. A valve 33 under the control of a lever located adjacent the dump operator, is employed for controlling the flow of oil through the by-pass, thus to predetermine and fix a speed of rotation of the dump. Fixed cushioning devices, 33 are provided in the ends of cylinder 31 at the ends of by-pass 32, where they enter said cylinder a short distance from the opposite ends thereof to retard and bring the piston 30, and the. dump structure to an easy and positive stop without shock or jar to the structure.

Pivotally mounted adjacent one of the rails 4 is an arm 34 having a deflecting cam or wing 35. Arm 34 is connected to a short revoluble shaft 36' and another arm 37 extends from this shaft and is connected by a link 38 to one arm of a bell crank 39. This bell crank is mounted on the frame 3 near one side thereof A push rod 40 i s located adjacent the. dump within suitable guides 41 which are.

stationary. This push rod is so located that when the dump is in its normal or horizontal position. it will be engaged by one arm :ofthe bell crank 39, as shown in Figure 4. The push rod-40 is connected tothe stem 42 of a valve mounted for reciprocation L within a casing 43. Opening into this casing is a pressure inlet pipe 44 and separate pressure outlet pipes 45v and'46. The pipe 45 opens into one end of an air cylinder 47 of said air-cylinder. This air cylinder is located adjacent a track section 48 leading to the dump and which sectionis adapted to arm 53.

align with the track 4 when the dump is in its normal position. Chocks or horns 49 are pivotally connected to the sides of the rails of track 48 and are connected by links 50 to arms 51 extending from a transverse shaft that the horns 49, when raised, hold a car i C in an upwardly and forwardly inclined position. When the horns 49 are holding the car in this manner the point of connection between the links 50 and the arms 51 is past the dead center. I

The parts are so proportioned that when a car C is held by the horns 49 its forward end is close to the vertical plane occupied by the end of the oscillatory dump. The

deflecting wing 35 is so arranged that when it is engaged by the front wheel of a car passing onto the dump track 4 the rear wheels of the same car have just left the track 48 and passed onto the track 4. The front wheels of the next car, however, have not as yet reached the horns 49 when the first car passes onto the track 4. As a car gravitates onto the track 4 one of its front wheels will push the wing 35 laterally thereby causing the bell crank 39 to thrust against the rod 40 and shift the valve in the casing 43. Thus pressure will be directed from the pipe 44 to one end of the cylinder 47 and produce a thrust upon the This will result in the elevation of the horns 49 so as to stop the car ap= proaching the horns. At the same time the rod 56 will be drawn away from the rod 17. Thus the oscillatory dump is released from all restraining means and by operating a' hand lever 60 coupled to a valve 61, shown in diagram in Figure 3, said valve control ling the flow of air under'pressure to the cylinder 26, the rack 21 can be shifted longitudinally so as to rotate the gear 20 and the dump frame 3. As the dump is provided with standards 57 having retaining beams 58 thereon for engaging channels in the sides of the car C, it will be obvious that when the dump is oscillated the car will be held to the rails. The dumping movement of the car is retarded by the oil contained within the cylinder 31. As soon as the load has been discharged from the car the operator reverses the pressure to the cylinder 26 so that the dump is brought back toward its normal position. As soon as the dump arrives at this position the operator, shifts the valve in thecasing 43 by means of a lever 59, thereby returning the rod 40 to its initial position and causing the piston in the cylinder 47 to pull on the arm 53. This will result in breaking the joint between the links 50 and the arms 51 so that the horns 49 will be lowered. At the same time the rod 56 will be projected into the sleeve 18 and against the rod 17, thus rotating shaft 10 and breaking the joint between the links 12 and the arms 11. Consequently the horns 5 will be lowered. Thus it will be seen that the two cars held by the horns 49 and 5 respectively. will be simultaneously released, the second car traveling from the track 48 onto the track 4 and taking the place of the first car which starts off of the track 4 by gravity when released. As soon as one of the front wheels of the car moving onto the dump comes against the wing 35, the valve in the casing 43 will be again operated as hereinbefore described with the result that the piston in cylinder 47 will be reversed, rod 56 withdrawn from the sleeve 18 and the horns 5 and 49 elevated. Thus the horns 5 will stop the car passing onto the track 4, the front wheels of the car coming against the cushioning blocks 8. The second car will be stopped by the elevated horns 49 as shown.

If the rails of the tracks 48 and 4 do not properly register when the piston in cylinder 47 is actuated to lower the horns 49 the rod 56 will come against the shield 19 and said horns cannot be lowered. Consequently the cars will not be released. They can only be released when the rods 17 and 56 properly register with the opening 19 and with each other so as to enable the rod 56 to enter the sleeve 18 and thrust against the rod 17. During this action the dump is of course locked against oscillation by the rod 56. When the dump is in any position other than upright, the shield 19 is interposed between the rods 19 and 56.

From the foregoing description it will be apparent that only two valves are necessary to be operated by the attendant. One of these valves controls the lowering of the horns 49 and 5 and the locking of the dump against oscillation while the other valve controls the oscillation of the dump. The manipulation of these valves can be effected by any person whether or not experienced and there is no danger of accidents resulting because cars cannot be shifted from track 48 to track 4 unless the tracks properly register.

It will be noted that the cars on the stationary section, just before reaching the dump are supported in elevated position by the horns 49 so that when the horns are released the cars will start forward quickly by gravity. The same is true of each car as it is brought to position on the track in the dump. When the horns 5 are lowered the car on the dump will start forward quickly by gravity.

As before stated the dumping speed is always under the control of the operator who can have a lever nearby which, when shifted, will operate the valve controlling the by-pass 32 thereby to retard the movement of the piston 30 or accelerate it as desired to correspondingly control the movement of the dump. Importance is also attached to the fact that the piston 30 is positively quickened after it passes the ends of the by-pass so that the dump and its operating parts will be brought to an easy and noiseless stop regardless of the speed of rotation and at fixed points where all of the track sections are in proper register.

What is claimed is:

1. The combination with an oscillatory dump and atrack section thereon, of means carried by the dump for holding a car against movement along the track section, a stationary track section leading to the dump, means adjacent thereto for holding a car against movement on the stationary track section toward the dump, the track section on the dump being movable into and out of register with the stationary track section, and a means for simultaneously effecting three operations, namely, locking the dump against movement while the two track sections are in register, actuating the car holding means of the stationary track sec tion to release the car held thereby, and actuating the car holding means on the dump to release the car held thereby.

2. The combination with an oscillatory dump and a track section thereon and means adjacent the track section for holding a car against movement therealong, of a stationary track section leading to the dump, means adjacent thereto for holding a car agalnst movement toward the dump, a locking rod, power operated means for shifting the rod into engagement with the .dump to hold the track section on the dump-in alignment with the stationary track section, and means operated simultaneously with such movement of the locking rod for actuating the car holding means on the dump to release the held car.

3. The combination with an oscillatory dump, a track section thereon, and car holding means mo-vably mounted adjacent the track section, of a stationary track section leading to the dump, car holding means adj acent thereto, a locking rod, power operated means for shifting said rod in one direction to engage the dump and look its track section in alignment with the stationary track section, means upon the dump and operated by the locking rod for actuating the car holding means to release the car on the dump, and means operated simultaneously with the actuation of the locking rod for releasing a car held upon the stationary track section.

4. The combination with an oscillatory dump, a track section thereon, and. car holding means adjacent said track section, of a stationary track section leading to the dump, car holding means adjacent thereto, a locking rod, power operated means under the control of an operator for actuating said rod to lock the oscillatory dump with its track section in line with the stationary track section and to simultaneously release the cars held upon the dump track section and the stationary track section, and means operated by a car moving onto the dump track section for unlocking the dump and returning the car holding means on the dump and stationary track section to opera tive positions.

5. The combination with an oscillatory dump, a track section thereon, and means for holding a car upon said track section, of a stationary track section leading to the dump, means adjacent thereto for holding a car against movement toward the dump, power operated means under the control of an operator for simultaneously locking the two track sections in alignment and for releasing the cars on the respective track sections, and means operated by the movement of a car from the stationary track section and onto the dump track section for automatically unlocking the dump and resetting the car holding means on the dump and stationary track sections.

6. The combination with an oscillatory dump, a track section thereon, and car holding means adjacent said track section, of

a stationary track section leading toward the dump, car holding means adjacent thereto, a locking rod, power operated means.

under the control of an operator for simul taneously shifting the car holding means of the stationary track section to release the held car and to movethe locking rod, means for holding said rod and the car holding means against movement when the track sections are out of alignment, and means upon the oscillatory dump for engagement by the rod when the track sectlons are in alignment to hold the dump against oscillation- 7. The combination with an oscillatory dump, a track section thereon, and car holding means adjacent the track section, of a stationary track section for directing cars onto the dump, means adjacent thereto for holding cars against movement, a gear revoluble with the dump, a rack engaging the gear, separate power operated means under the control of an operator for shifting the car holding means of the stationary track section to operative position and for shifting the rack to oscillate the dump, and liquid cushioning means for retarding the oscillation of the dump.

8. The combination with an oscillatory dump, a track section thereon and means for locking the dump against oscillation, a gear revoluble with the dump, a rack meshing therewith, separate means under the control of an operator for unlocking the dump and for shifting the rack longitudinally in either direction, and cushioning means for retarding the movement of the 'rack in either direction.

9, The combination with an oscillatory dump, a track section thereon and means for locking the dump against oscillation, a gear revoluble with the dump, a rack meshing therewith, separate means under the control of an operator for unlocking the dump and for shifting the rack longitudinally in either direction, and cushioning means for retarding the movement of the rack in either direction, said means including a cylinder having a bypass, a piston connected to the rack and mounted for reciprocation in the cylinder, a fluid filling the cylinder and by-pass, and means for controlling the flow of the fluid through the by-pass.

10. The combination with an oscillatory dump, a track section thereon, and means for holding a car upon said track section, of a stationary track section leading to the dump, means adjacent thereto for holding a car against movement toward the dump, power operated means for locking the two track sections in alinement and for releasing the cars on the respective track sections, and means operated by the movement of a car from the stationary track section and onto the dump track section for automatically unlocking the dump and resetting the car holding means 011 the dump and stationary track sections.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto aflixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

DANIEL F. LEPLEY.

Witnesses:

W. H. SoIssoN, CHAs. L. BAER. 

